There are no Heroes
by Last Harlequin
Summary: After defeating Gannon, and being sent back to his own time, Alittle prevention stops Gannon's Hyrule from coming to pass, but it also brings about unforseen consequences for the one who would be Hero. Post OoT, AU ignoreing Majora's Mask.
1. Return to Nothing

It's funny how time works. The Hero of today, the shadow of tomorrow. The world needed a hero, and a child of destiny rose to the task at the behest of a princess. Time however is no ally to this one who was the greatest. It seems that even time cannot fix some things. Especially things that never happened. That were never allowed to happen. That was the Story with this young hero. This child of ages. Merely a child with years of travel and experience under his belt but in the body of a mere thirteen year old. He had expected to come back to a heroes welcome. But yet. No one remembered. And when he tried to explain he was merely thought mad. Life is no longer as it was, it is amazing what can change in so short a time. The youth, named Link by a mother he never knew thrown from his home with the death of the Deku tree. They did not want to believe that it had not been his fault. He had hidden the spiritual stone, so as to never allow the future he had seen to come to pass knowing Zelda had carefully done the same to the other stones. Now though, life was not so kind. He remembered the looks of hate on the faces of the eternally young, not even his friend Saria would rise to his defense. He begged and pleaded but in the end, he was banished to the lost woods. Eventually he ended up in Hyrule field. Still bearing only a deku shield and a small hunting blade. As the Kokiri blade had been stripped from him by those he had called friend. The young man and his small blue companion were the only ones who remembered. Now they sat at the edge of hyrule field before a small blaze he had made. Merely poking at the blaze and the spitted bird he had managed to kill with his slingshot. The bird was slowly roasting as he reached up and turned it carefully and sighed as the small blue sprite sat upon the ground beside him. And sighed audibly. It had always surprised Link how loud such a small creature could occasionally be. When the small sapphire being spoke leaning back on thin arms and looking up at him with pure blue eyes she spoke.

"What went wrong? How did this happen?" She asked and he spent a moment trying to decide if the question was rhetorical or not. Sometimes the flitting fairy didn't want an answer but after a moment of sustained silence he merely set his face a bit before responding looking down to her.

"we changed things." he said it was all he really needed to say. And she accepted his lack of extensive speech in their now long friendship as normal. He had never said more than one or two sentences. Speech was never his strong point but she had gotten good at reading between the lines. As well as a touch of telepathy thanks to the close bond of a fairy to its companion. They managed, that was really all that mattered at the end of the day. He looked at the cooking bird his hawk-like blue eyes fixed on the bird as he watched it cook. She was a bit hungry as well but could wait. Fairies could eat their weight a day. And they did not weigh much to begin with and they had eaten that morning. Really, she thought to herself, it wasn't So bad. Even though all they did was really for naught. If they had done nothing they could have lived happily believing Link was a Kokiri until he grew. And she had little doubt that the Deku tree would excuse a non kokiri from living amongst them. Life could go back to being simple. But now, well things were how they were. Link took a deep breath as he gathered the small bird and looked it over poking at it tenitively with his knife and then nodding and beginning to cut some of it carefully from the already rather small animal. Navi looked at the bird as he cut into it. The bird was so much like them, cut down before their time really, could have accomplished great things. Inspired many in their own way. But now? Well they'd been left for dead. Navi nearly cried thinking about the slightly disjointed metaphor, Link must have heard her soft sounds, his ears had always been very good and he brought a hand down curled it loosely around her and smiled. She looked up at him and took a deep breath and let the train of thought go there. No point dwelling on what could have been. There is a new future to write now.

Time passed swiftly for them. A few days trek had brought them far into Hyrule field and to the gates of Lon Lon ranch. He walked in watching the hands working diligently and wondered if he might find himself a job. He could just go on hunting he supposed. But it was not a comfortable life and at least this way he'd have a bed of hay to look forward to at the end of the day. It was not as though it would be anything compared to what he had lived through. He went looking for the pudgy man he knew as Talon. Of coarse life occasionally deals you an unexpected hand and a small blur of red met him with a pair of wide open eyes that made him jump a bit, it spoke even before he had a chance to recognize it, but once it spoke he recognized the white clad farm girl. Malon, he hid a smile he knew how she would grow up and smiled inwardly at the hell she would be saved.

"Hello! Something I can help you with Fairy boy?" he had nearly forgotten her little nickname for him. At least it wasn't something silly like grasshopper or something. He smiled and nodded before speaking, Navi his beneath his hat after being addressed and peeked occasionally out from beneath it at Malon who giggled at the somewhat suddenly shy sprite. Link responded to her a moment later. "Maybe work?" Malon frowned a moment and tapped her chin then smiled and hopped a bit reaching out and grabbing his arm and pulling his arm along behind her as she spoke rapidly.

"We'll have to find my father to find out about that! Come on fairy boy! I'll introduce you!" he thought he had been exaggerating to himself when he remembered her as being exuberant but it appeared his memory mellowed him as he ran awkwardly to keep up with her. She dragged him halfway across the ranch to find Talon actually doing work, another mental chuckle, he had often wondered if the owner of the ranch ever did any work. However it appeared he did, darn. Well anyway he stayed silent as Malon's mouth moved as quickly as ever to attract her father's attention as he smiled rosily beneath his mustache as she summed up their meeting moments before to her father in detail before pleading with him to give link a position, bringing up the points that they could always use another hand. That the coocoos needed a new watcher after the old one left and that they needed an additional hand at that she really didn't have anyone her own age on the ranch, and that she was rather cut off from the castle and the nearby settlements by the ranch's demands. Eventually the tirade of reasons caused the jovial ranch owner to raise his hands to stop her, chuckling even as he did. Then he turned to Link without a shift in his smile the twinkle of amusement in his large eyes as he turned the conversation to Link.

"you sure you want the job? It is a lot of hard work child." Talon said and Link merely nodded determinedly, causing Talon another swell of mirth. It did his heart some good to see a young man looking to make his own like that. It was a little odd so he asked what he was thinking, hardly the kind of man to do otherwise.

"but you better check with your parents before you even think about getting a job ya hear?" he said and to this Link responded without a blink or even a shadow of hesitation. "none to ask." to this both Talon and Malon were silent the mirth suddenly dropped from the air as both looked somewhat uncomfortable in their own ways. Malon looked like she would start crying, wearing her heart on her sleeve. Talon however bore a look of sadness and then he spoke softly.

"I am truly sorry to hear that son, of coarse you can have the job, can't have a young'un like you going hungry. It wouldn't be right," he turned to his daughter and softly spoke her name and she turned to him snapped from her revere by her father's voice, deep in the back of his mind Link envied her. "Malon, the coocoos need feeding and so do the horses, you bring this young man.." he was interrupted by Link adding in the missing bit of information that was expressed. "Link." Talon looked at him for a moment and then nodded. "then take Link with you and get started, we still have a few hours of daylight and I don't want them wasted if I can help it." Malon back to herself in a flash took his hand a moment and gave it a softer tug to follow her, which he obeyed as she rushed off with her seemingly endless energy. The work that evening was simple enough but made more difficult by Malon's questions. He listened carefully but tried to be careful in answering them. He couldn't reveal what he knew without appearing to be a scary person, and likely causing as much havoc as it had in kokiri forest. But no point denying the truth.

"you come from the forest don't you fairy boy?" She said he only had to spend a moment in thought before answering, her voice was softer now closer to her singing voice, he smiled pleased at that particular memory, but cut it loose before h slipped too far and left her question unanswered. "yes." Malon piped up a bit but got it back under control. "but don't the forest kids stay in the forest usually?" okay, there was something he was sincerely hoping she wouldn't ask, he took a moment to gather his thoughts and tried to formulate and appropriate answer for her. However Navi beat him to the point. "usually." the little blue girl added up causing Malon to start and look over seeing the twinkling creature that appeared as merely a small ball of light to her. She smiled. "hello fairy! It's okay I won't hurt ya I swear." Malon raised a hand palm out fingers together which made Link chuckle at her mock salute. But it did coax Navi out of Link's hat and left her fluttering around like she was a tiny hummingbird though seemingly with a touch of levitation judging by the slow flaps of her wings. Link had always wondered about that but had never really seen fit to ask. He felt he's have plenty of time to unravel the mysteries after finishing with the chickens. Clucking things were crowded around his feet so he was throwing the feed out further in an attempt to thin out the crowd of little white bodies. Malon was tittering at his feathered entrapment and wagged a finger at him as he blushed a bit and continued throwing the feed out further as it did indeed begin to thin he turned around and with a slight smirk tossed some at her as the birds flew up onto her causing her to yelp and fall right onto her rear. Take that. The hysterics eventually subsided as the feathered beasts eventually fluttered off Malon in favor of more concentrated food sources with less fight in them. Leaving Link to offer a hand to pull her up which she took as his apology and accepted it. After they had finished with the clucking things they moved on to the much larger mooing things. This was a little more difficult and required a pitchfork to do, an implement that Malon wielded deftly and Link floundered with trying to find the trick from watching her as his arms slowly became tired. He thanked the goddesses that there were not as many cows as there had been coocoos. Malon had been chatting to him as they worked. Apparently not really expecting him to say anything as she asked no questions. She had mentioned how the breeding stock at Lon Lon was only top grade, seeing as that was the only milk that passed Talon's inspection. And that was something he excelled at, he could often tell just by looking at the cow whether or not it would produce the milk they wanted it Link marveled privately that the old farmer was really good for something contrary to popular belief. The work finished however long it took, it was after sunset and Malon showed their newest farmboy to lead him to the evening meal in the small barracks that she referred to as the hand house. She let him in and there were six other men ranging from a few years older than him, to in their mid twenties or thirties. Professional hands no doubt, he waved as Malon introduced him with flourish. To their collective credit they greeted him warmly and waved him over as he took an empty seat one of a few at the table it was a little short and the table came up to his solar plexus, something he was definitely not used to and it looked a little odd in his green clothes that many eyed but no one questioned, after all, Malon _had_ introduced him as "Link, the Forest Boy". The food was stew and vegetables something that looked, and smelled, very good. The meal went quietly with much joking and warm atmosphere, and Link sneaking bits of food to Navi who had again taken to hiding beneath his hat again. After the meal he was shown to a series of Bunk beds inhabited by the hands and Link took the bottom of an unoccupied bunk and pulled the covers up as the hands sat and talked yet by lamplight and played some cards, a game Link neither knew nor particularly understood, but they respected his need for sleep as he wasn't he only one, some other hands had turned in as well. And at least they weren't making a big ruckus so he soon slipped off to sleep. With Navi settling near him at the end of the pillow nearest the wall both slipped off to sleep rather easily, and dreamt of good memories, saving the Gorons, twice, the final defeat of Ganon, the victory against the Temple Guardians…. All of it only slightly colored by the fact that none of it would ever happen.


	2. Bad things, Good People

Disclaimer: I do not own Legend of Zelda, or there would have been some more interesting stories for those games.

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Time passed swiftly at work, life went day by day, day in and out it would grow hot then cold again, the coocoos were fed, as were the livestock. It wasn't easy but it wasn't hard. He didn't doubt his skills were rusty, but who needed them in times like these, times of peace? Disconnection and distance, isolation, once a month a caravan took the goods to market in the castle town. And he sat and watched them walk away with the castle guards as support, one never knew what lurked in the field these days. Except him, he could name visualize and defeat any of the normal denizens of the field, just as he could with so many others, his nightmares were riddled with them.

He would oft awake in the middle of the night grasping over his shoulder for a sword that was not there. It was distressing when this occurred but he would simply roll over and try to forget, soon he was asleep again. Life, for all it's minor problems was quiet, his little world within the ranch left him soft and quiet, but he was smiling almost every day, he had learned the card game the workers had been playing, Solo a game from their old homes.

The young blond man, as the years passed, was accepted here, he wasn't weird, nor as he the child of destiny, though the little blue fairy fluttered about, Navi, found ways to amuse herself, making friends of some of the fireflys and a bit less cautious of those around them she was a staple flitting about when Link was near. She too was one of the family and her normally high annoying voice was discovered to be quite the singing voice at some point. The exact moment was lost on them, but she lead songs about as much as the developing maiden with a pitchfork.

Speaking of Malon she had begun to develop nicely in the intervening years, her features had become more womanly though she retained the tanned and strong form of a worker refusing to become the prissy girls so many of the market girls had become in the years. She still smiled often and spoke whenever she was given leave, and would burst into song at the slightest provocation but that was what made her Malon.

Link however couldn't say the same in the four years he had grown taller and indeed stronger, a few scars about the arms from mishaps here and again his skin tanned and his hair sun bleached his face smiling as he worked whistling and when the need arose pulling out his ocarina, one of the few remaining mementos of his youth. He thought less and less about what had happened, could have happened, as it became obvious to him that it wasn't going to happen. Time continued to pass in it's fashion, well, until we come to the true turning point in the Ranch, one that would be remembered as the Upheaval in years to come.

The day had begun simply enough, they had awoken at dawn to feed the animals and let them out to pasture. But after that things began downhill. Jed, one of the workers, and the best card player by his own admission pointed to the horizon in the direction he knew instantly the Gerudo Desert lie in. From the East a cloud of dust rose, and after a dozen minutes of scrambling the raiders were upon them The attack was swift, these were farmhands, those who were not cut down were bound and taken with, most of the hands among them Link only escaped by unhorsing his would be Captor as they escaped and breaking free his bonds in time to defeat the raiding Gerudo. By taking one of her swords he fended her halberd as it came down toward his head, the battle was engaged as the warrior woman made jabs which were swiftly fended, if somewhat awkwardly by Link, who was realizing just how rusty he had become, but this did not stop the fight, near misses abounded, within minutes Link was sporting numerous small cuts and slashes his work clothes tattering with every near miss. However his skills were coming back to him in a rush, the next thrust led to him reaching forward with a swiftness of well worked muscles and tugging the halberd as she tried to draw back for another strike keeping her off balance until he lept in and brought the Blade around the pommel striking the red haired female soundly as she Shrieked and fell boneless to the ground. She was quite unconscious he looked down at her and gave her a swift kick in the stomach that had her doubling over a bit as he looked at the carnage that surrounded him, a handful of the hands lay dead, the few that stirred were badly injured and broken, moans and pain all around him all that was missing was the smell of decay and he could have been back in the Shadow Temple....

He sighed and starting first with the Gerudo he bound her tightly as he knew how, ironically a knot he knew only from being captured by the Gerudo so many times and thrown into their dungeons. The irony gave him a grim smile.

He walked amongst the fallen taking the wounded by whatever means he could to the inside of the ranch laying them in any open space available as he slowly began to do what he could for them, some not as badly wounded as others but many of them would die still, at the end well into the night it had becoming obvious that those who recovered were the ones who were going to.

He had bound the Gerudo and hung her in the smokehouse from a meat hook by the ropes so she would have no chance at escape. Now with those in pain either sleeping or recovering as best they could he had the time to go to the Gerudo, who's head had finally stopped bleeding, figures he had hit her harder than he thought. He walked into the room and immediately saw the helpless woman hanging from the hook spinning slowly first to one side, then the other. He walked up just out of kicking range and she began to thrash and growl but spoke no words. He held up a hand to stop her and confused she did and then he spoke.

"I only have one question..... Why?" He asked as he felt something shifting under his hat, a habit Navi still portrayed. He loosened the cap and she slipped out, she looked more than a little flustered and flew up into the Gerudo's Face, and promptly wailed out with a tiny arm and punched her getting a small flying start. The Blue sprite then flew back to hover around Link's head as the Gerudo went into another spat of cursing and growling. He looked at Navi who looked completely self satisfied and unrepentant and decided that was a fight for later. He waited for the thrashing Raider to tire herself enough to fall silent again and then spoke.

"Why did you do this?" He asked harshly his face was calm though his voice betrayed the barely contained rage. She looked at him hard a few moments before speaking.

"because we needed more slaves, and more food. The supplies run dry.... The castle pushes us toward death and we will not abide." Why lie now? Who would believe a mere child in any event. Link looked her square in the eyes.

"I wish you would all just go away. Everything was so perfect..." he said as tears rose into his eyes as he thought of all the friends who had died or been kidnapped. He walked out of the smokehouse back toward his recovering friends and looked over those who slept changing improvised dressings for newer ones. He looked out to the pasture where a number of the animals were missing, most of the coocoos and a number of the cows were gone... he looked around until he saw the horse he knew and pulling out the ocarina he had taken from his bed he played a swift tune that had the horse galloping toward him. She had grown swiftly, and even now she was agitated, he calmed her petting her head and patting her side eventually she calmed somewhat. Something struck him.... a thought his own mind had hidden from him until then, Malon. He ran back, searching amungst the living and the dead, for any sign of the girl, he searched long and eventually he found her, asleep beneath a bale of hay, her clothes cut her body rather beaten from what he could see, a few nasty looking cuts that would likely scar... but alive, her wounds crudely dressed, no doubt the source of some of the rips in her dress. He laid out a hand to her and she jumped awake just as it touched her and she bolted backward dislodging much of the hay, her face a bit pale and her eyes wild. Though after a moment she calmed before speaking none of the former fire in her voice, only ice cold fear.

"Are they gone?" She asked looking at him pleading with him in her eyes. He was pleased to be able to answer with an affirmative nod of the head. She leaped at him as though she were sitting on a spring her arms around his neck squeezing somewhat painfully. She was crying.

"I was so scared! I-Is everyone alright?" another pleading look but he could only look away , she reburied her face in his shirt silent this time. He lay a hand on her back and let her cry for a time before giving her a soft pat and she pulled away from the now wet front of his shirt. She looked... lessened, defeated. It hurt his chest just to look at her he stood and offered her a hand she took it, but when she stood she stumbled a bit hissing in pain, looking her over again, one of her ankles looked a little swollen, probably just twisted. He took her arm and looped it over his shoulder crouching a bit, it was uncomfortable but he knew she wouldn't take well to being carried. After assisting her to the farmhouse and setting her in a chair near the others she looked around to him before speaking.

"this.... is all of them?" Link looked over the room before speaking, "The remaining survivors" he said and she cast him a look before asking halfheartedly as though she really didn't want to know. "what do you mean, remaining?" Link looked her in the eyes, "Kidnapped." her face fell as she mouthed the word oh then looked to the wounded.

"We have to send word to the castle and let them know what has happened." She said Link nodded as Navi Flitted into view and shot right up to Link's ear and he nodded. "I'll go when more of you can stand." He said in a way that left no room for argument then moved amongst the wounded checking them before sitting down at the table With Malon, she had gone silent, an uncommon state for her. She raised her head before speaking.

"what about M-my father?" she asked clearly communicating fear of the answer. Link just looked away. Malon spent the rest of the night crying.

The night was long. Not surprising considering all the wounded and the lingering fear of a return trip. The fears however appeared unfounded. Periodically he stepped out to check on their "guest" she had long fallen into a fitful sleep and seemed in no danger of awakening, he left her be for now. As the sun rose a hand awoke Link from his place, head down on the table he looked up to Malon who had taken up a large threshed stick as a crutch until her ankle healed. Today he and Malon went out and Link began digging, even Navi was subdued hovering close to either Link or Malon depending on the positions of each of them. First they buried Talon, it was just the two of them no words were spoken. Then one by one the other graves were filled until all the dead were interred and a prayer to the goddesses recited quietly by both of them. They then began back toward the farmhouse to see who was up and to get food going. There were Six of them left total, seven counting their guest. They were solemn though many tried to joke and remain upbeat there was a cloud hanging over them, it had been a day now since the attack. Eventually a quiet anger seethed and silence became the norm for the day. Link eventually went outside to feed the remaining livestock and their guest who had decided to go silent and refuse food but he figured he'd try. He was surprised to hear Malon call out to him while he stood in the pasture watching over the cows. Link turned as she hobbled over. She stood right up next to him her head bowed a moment before raising her head with a violent fire in her eyes.

"Teach me to fight! They said you took down one of the Raiders. I-I want to fight like that... so this never happens again..." Malon spoke with fire in her voice and vengeance in her eyes but Link remained calm he merely looked at her watching her moves until she began to shift uncomfortably under his gaze. Eventually he turned his head and spoke softly words that made her smile grimly.

"Alright. After you recover." She nodded and stood by him then as the sun began it's decent into the western sky. Time from then passed swiftly again, a hazy of sleepless nights and long days, On the fourth day, the less injured were up and about in limited function but some resumed their duties though the heavy quiet continued even after all six of them were up again. The fifth day found a corpse with it, the Gerudo had slipped a rope trying to escape and hung herself. Link had buried her just off the property, offering the same prayers as he had for all the others, but his heart had again found a hardness that it had not possessed since his adult life five years before. Now he merely stood and looked toward the east, he knew who had sent the Raiders, there was only one it could have been. The sixth day saw all those recovered, hardened and steeled they resumed their duties but the mirth was gone from them, especially for the formerly bright eyed Malon who now barely spoke at all. Taking Epona, Link on this day packed his bag and took a bow and rode, all of them watched him leave a signed missive from Malon, the new owner of the Ranch describing the situation and the occurrence and a pocket full of rupees. He rode for Castle Town, somewhere he would never thought to return to. Life it seems has a way of smashing our expectations and sometimes dreams as well. Link was seeing it first hand. He rode hard intent on making the normally two day ride in one alone, he knew Epona could take it, so would he. He had some things to see to, and a few purchases to make.

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A/N: The first flicker of interest in this story brought about a second chapter written in a fury. third to follow with continued interest. I really do live on feedback, give me some.


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